As people in north China start to bundle up for the fast-approaching winter, giant pandas in the region just couldn’t wait to get their paws on the first snow.
The first heavy snowfall of the season arrived in north-east China’s Heilongjiang province on Saturday, much to the delight of 12-year-old Sijia and 10-year-old Youyou.
Footage capturing the excited pandas at the Yabuli Ski Resort shows them rushing to play outside and roll around in the fluffy snow.
As people in north China start to bundle up for the fast-approaching winter, giant pandas in the Heilongjiang region just couldn’t wait to get their paws on the first snow
Footage capturing the excited pandas at the Yabuli Ski Resort in Heilongjiang shows Sijia and Youyou rushing to play outside and roll around in the fluffy snow
Video shows Youyou the panda doing somersaults, playing catch and riding on swings
The two bears have stayed at the Yabuli Panda House since 2016 after moving away from the warmer climate of south-west China’s Sichuan province.
They have adapted well to the snowy climate of the north-east region, as shown in their excitement.
Behaving like ecstatic children at a playground, the adorable giant pandas ran, did somersaults, rode on the swings and played catch in the snow.
After an exhausting play session, Sijia was seen perched in the middle of her snow-covered enclosure, chewing on a hearty meal of bamboo shoots while Youyou was seen relaxing on a bench swing.
After an exhausting play session, Sijia was seen perched in the middle of her snow-covered enclosure, chewing on a hearty meal of bamboo shoots
Youyou was seen relaxing on a bench swing, or at least attempting to
The snow was 20 centimetres (8 inches) thick, creating the perfect fluffiness for the pandas
Keeper Zhang Quanfu told state broadcaster CCTV that snow had covered the smells the pandas are used to, piquing their curiosity to explore their new surrounding.
‘The snow was about 20 centimetres (8 inches) thick, and it was very fluffy,’ Zhang said. ‘To the pandas, it was like playing on a mattress.’
The average temperature in the region has been around zero degrees, which is the perfect weather for pandas to roam outdoors, he added.
While its numbers are slowly increasing, the giant panda remains one of the rarest and most endangered bears in the world.
Giant panda Youyou seen struggling with his tyre swing in his snow-covered enclosure
The average temperature in the Heilongjiang region has been around zero degrees, which is the perfect weather for pandas to roam outdoors, zookeeper Zhang Quanfu said
Not sharing! Giant panda Youyou is seen playing with his red ball in the snow
Sijia is pictured perched in her enclosure that overlooks the mountains of Heilongjiang
There are an estimated 1,600 giant pandas living in the wild currently and 300 in zoos and breeding centres around the world.
Experts are unclear what age giant pandas can reach in the wild, but the oldest panda reared in captivity so far is 38 years old.
A wild panda’s diet is 99 per cent bamboo. wit the remaining one per cent made up of small rodents.
Giant Pandas need to consume around 20 to 40 pounds (10 to 20 kg) of bamboo each day to get the nutrients they need.